REGIONAL GIRLS CROSS COUNTRY Zajac qualifies for state, again

The Cardinal Mooney senior ran to seventh place in the Division II regional meet.
By JOE SCALZO
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
BOARDMAN -- Cardinal Mooney senior Val Zajac has run thousands of miles over the past four years, and dozens of races -- including three state cross country meets.
So she no longer gets nervous before big races, right?
"No, I definitely still get nervous," she said, smiling. "It's my senior year. I want to do as well as I can."
Zajac's main worry on Saturday was that she wouldn't qualify for her fourth state meet -- something she put to rest with a seventh-place finish at the Division II regional meet at Boardman High School.
"It's the best feeling in the world," Zajac said. "It would have been horrible to not make it my senior year."
This is the first year Zajac has not run with her teammates at the regional meet.
"It was different, but my teammate, Erik Moss, made it to state and that pumped me up," Zajac, whose best finish at state was fifth as a sophomore, said. "I'd love to make it on the podium next week [to earn all-Ohio honors]. That would be really nice."
Cingcade, Davies 2-3
West Branch seniors Megan Cingcade and Lisa Davies finished 2-3 behind Cleveland Heights Beaumont junior Maggie Infeld in the "A" race. Southeast senior Raina Keppler placed fifth.
Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy won the "A" race and Richfield Revere won the "B" race.
Because of the number of teams in Div. II, there were two girls races. The top three teams and top 12 individuals not in a qualifying team advanced to next week's state meet at Scioto Downs in Columbus.
Div. III
McDonald senior Jenn Wenhold finished second in the Div. III race and her twin sister, Jess, placed fifth to lead McDonald to the regional title.
"It means a lot more to go with the team," Jenn Wenhold, last week's district champion, said. "It's our last year in high school and we really wanted to make it."
Creston Norwayne junior Nicole Camp placed first, edging Jenn Wenhold by just over a second.
"I thought I had her at the end," Jenn Wenhold said. "I'll have to get her next week."
Fell, recovered
Jess Wenhold actually slipped and fell -- it rained on and off all day -- but regrouped quickly.
"That kind of woke me up a little," she said. "Our team runs really good in cold weather. It was kinda fun."
McDonald senior Nicole Booth placed ninth for the Blue Devils, who also won last year's regional title.
In the Div. I race, Massillon Jackson won the team title with 94 points. Canton GlenOak's Jenna Yeakel was the individual medalist, finishing in 19:51.31.
scalzo@vindy.com